Fox of the Zodiac
by Moony Fox
Summary: Mana is the hidden member of the curse. The spirit held within her is a fox. Not a true member of the zodiac and looked down upon as lower than even the cat. She is to be encaged forever, or until Shigure decides to save her...


**(A/N: Hey, Kitsune here. I've been wanting to do a Furuba fic for a while so I'm glad I finally get to work on one! By the way, the fic starts on a Saturday around 1:00 pm. So here's the fic! Enjoy!)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket or any of the characters. I wish I did, but I don't. I only own the fox: Mana, part of the plot and anything else that isn't from Furuba.**

**Rating: T**

**Chapter 1: Fox of the Zodiac.**

"Hai, Shigure-sama, I thank you for allowing me to live in your home." Mana said shyly as she bowed. She was wearing a red kimono with white flowers on it as well as a pair of sandals. The kimono matched her crimson red, waist-length hair and eyes.

"Of course, oh and san is fine." He said as he reached a hand out to her. He was wearing a traditional male kimono of a gray color. His hair and eyes were brown. She flinched slightly as she placed his hand on her head. "Come on, let's get you home, there's family there that want to meet you." She looked up at him and gave a shy smile. "This is the first time I've ever seen you smile. You should do it more often." He told her as he returned the smile. He removed his hand and motioned for her to follow him. She did as he led her to a car in which a man was waiting. The man was wearing black pants and white shirt. His hair was black while his eyes were a purple color. Opening the door for her, he looked at the man. "Haa-san, thank you."

"You're being very serious about this, I wasn't sure you would." Hatori said as he looked back at Mana. "Mana-san, you don't have to worry about Him any more. Shigure and I talked Him into allowing you to live with Shigure. When we get to his house, I'll look at that new scratch on your arm." With that Hatori pulled the car out into traffic and headed toward Shigure's house.

"Thank you both. I appreciate what you both have done for me. If there's anything I can do to repay you-" Mana's words were cut off.

"No. You have nothing to repay us for. We did this to ensure your health and safety." Hatori said.

"Hatori-san, Shigure-san, thank you..." The car ride the rest of the way was silent. When they arrived at the house, three people were waiting for them.

Mana stepped out of the car and followed the two men over to where the three people were. One boy had orange eyes and hair and was wearing green cargo pants and a white shirt as well a a red and white bracelet. The other boy had silver hair and purple tinted silver eves. He was wearing a red Chinese style shirt and tight black pants. The only girl there had brown hair and brown eyes and was wearing a simple and plain pink dress.

"Mana," Shigure said dropping all seriousness, "This is Kyo Sohma, Yuki Sohma, and Tohru Honda. Guys, this is Mana Hikari."

"It's nice to meet you." Mana and Tohru said in unison as they both bowed earning a smile from most of the men.

"Wait, Hikari? Shigure, I thought she was a Sohma." Yuki said accusingly.

"Technically she is, but she's from a very distant line, so in reality, she's hardly even a Sohma at all, after all, blood does thin after a while. True she could be called a Sohma because she's close enough related to able to get the curse, but she's a Hikari more than anything." Hatori said.

"So you're the fox?" Kyo asked speaking up.

"Yes, I am Mana, the fox of the zodiac." She replied.

"I had no idea there was a fox until Shigure-san told me about you." Tohru said. "I'm so very glad I get to meet you!" Tohru smiled.

"I'm glad to meet you too. All of you." Mana said returning the smile and looking over at Yuki and Kyo.

"Let's get inside, I want to look at your arm Mana-san" Hatori said.

"Her arm?" Yuki asked as he, Kyo and Tohru all looked at Mana. She sighed and lifted up her left kimono sleeve to reveal a long, semi-deep gash in it going from the top of the wrist to about 3 inches away from her elbow.

"Oh no! How did you get hurt Mana-san?" Tohru asked looking at the cut with a worried expression.

"It was Akito's doing, wasn't it?" Yuki asked her. Mana simply nodded and allowed herself to be escorted inside the house.

"Oh, by the way Mana-chan, you and Tohru-kun are sharing a room, your stuff is already there." Shigure told her. She nodded as she was guided by Hatori to couch where he sat her down and began to inspect her arm.

"Not as deep as usual, that's good..." Hatori mumbled to himself as the others all watched.

"Here Hatori-san." Tohru said as she handed him a first aid kit.

"Thank you." He took the kit and rummaged through it pulling out a small spray bottle. He aimed it at her arm and sprayed the cut making Mana wince at the slight burning feeling it caused. He then pulled out a rolled up bandage and wrapped her arm up with it using two small clips to hold it in place. "There, you should be fully healed in a few days."

"Thank you." Mana said.

"Oh, by the way," Shigure said, "Haa-san sent me your entrance exam test score. You'll be starting school with Kyo, Yuki and Tohru next on Monday." He told her.

"I passed?" she asked in awe.

"I don't see how you couldn't. You're a bright girl." Hatori said as he stood up. Well, I have to get back, now." With a slight wave he turned around and left.

"Mana-san, come on, I'll show you to our room!" Tohru said with a smile.

"O-okay." She said slightly startled as Tohru grabbed her hand and led her toward their room. Yuki and Kyo watched them go before returning to their previous activities.

"Oh wow, it's so big..." Mana said as she looked around the room. There was a large queen sized bed in the corner with a small side table next to it. On the side table was a lamp. There was a dresser next to a door which Mana assumed to lead to a closet. In the center of the room was a table that had two backpacks next to it and also three books on it.

"Oh, here!" Tohru said grabbing one of the book bags and handing it to Mana. "This one is yours."

"Oh, thank you." Mana said as she opened it to see all the school supplies she'd need in it.

"Oh, and your clothes are in the dresser." Tohru told her. "You have a lot of kimono's, they're very pretty."

"Thank you. If you want you can wear them sometime. We seem to be roughly the same size." Mana told her.

"Really? Do you really mean it? Oh, thank you so much!" Tohru said with another warm smile.

"Of course. We're friends right?" Mana asked looking at her hopefully.

"Yes, of course." Tohru said. "I'm so glad I get to meet another member of the zodiac! I never knew there was a fox in the zodiac, Are you like the cat?" She asked.

"The cat has it better than me... Being the fox is a true curse. Locked up from birth, never seeing the outside world, only knowing that others exist by the shadows that pass the door… Compared to the fox, the cat is treated like royalty. Most of the other zodiac members are unaware of the fox's existence. I guess I'm lucky that Shigure-san knew about me… if he hadn't of know, I would still be locked up, never to be released…" Mana sighed and looked over to Tohru who had an apologetic look on her face. "Hey, come on now, don't look like that. You didn't know, come on, now smile." Mana said smiling at her. Tohru looked out the window then back at Mana, smiling. "I think living here is gonna be pretty fun." Mana stood up. "What do you think?"

"Yes, I agree." Tohru said.

"Hey, Mana-san?" There was a voice at the door and they both turned to look and see Kyo standing there. "Want to go for a walk?" He asked in a mumble looking away.

"Sure, um, you don't mind, do you Tohru-san?" She asked walking toward the door.

"No, not at all. Have fun." Tohru said waving. With that Mana and Kyo left the room and headed outside.

**(A/N: And there is chapter 1 of 'Fox of the Zodiac'! Yay, I was in a slump recently so it took me a while to write. lol, oh well, at least I got it up before summer started. Well, I have chapter 2 up hopefully soon. Please review, bye! w)**


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